Fish Pic Friday - Hookin 'N' Cookin

Hi I'm K! Join me for some fishing fun, beautiful views, boating, hiking, and a lil cooking too!

Not the most variety ever.

Linked at The Right Way in the weekly Rule 5 Saturday LinkOrama. The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: On The Beach up on time and under budget at The Other McCain.

Beach Report 7/24/26

 

Brown Pelican on the remains of the south jetty at Flag Harbor. Now, pelicans aren't exactly rare on the Bay, but I've never seen them fishing close to shore here, and resting on the jetties. I don't know what it means, but wherever pelicans are, bait fish can't be far away.

It was another cool, gorgeous day. Unfortunately, the fossil hunting was subpar. 

Fish Pic Friday - Jessica Marie White-Page

 And some fish from Arkansas:

Thida, AR, C&J Training

Beach Report 7/21/26

When I got to the beach this afternoon, there were a bunch of pelicans sitting on the jetty, and a few were diving in the water:

And this is what they were eating, Menhaden schools in the shallow water.

Way up the beach I encountered this White-tailed Deer and her fawn:

At first they didn't see me, but when she finally did, she snorted, and they ran off back up the creek bed.

The Ospreys and eagles were out, too, and, oh yeah, I found 17 unremarkable shark's teeth.

Fish Pic Friday - Lil Red Heidi Hood

Heidi Thomasson@lilredheidihood God, Family, & the Great Outdoors • YouTube “Your Way Living” 

youtu.be/bY7dES9u0U0?si=TVCgnXEYEDXmeyZq

Some of her videos have been featured in Gone Fishin' posts.

The Wombat has Rule 5 Monday: Redhead in Denim up and garnering clicks at The Other McCain. Linked at The Right Way in the weekly Rule 5 Saturday LinkOrama.

Back From Fishin'

Another walk on trip, another early morning, another sunrise picture from the bay. 

This was "Location X." There were no fish in evidence here

There is new construction going on a James Island, where the Army Corps of Engineers is restoring the island as a dredge disposal area to place sediment from Baltimore Harbor. You can see a huge mound of sand that's new there, and a tug pushing a barge loaded with rocks and a loader.

Pete found us fish here, on some submerged old islands with drowned logs. The four of us managed to catch our limit stripers, one each plus "one for the captain," there, and left to try elsewhere. At one spot, one of the other fishermen caught a single Speckled Trout. They seem to be relatively rare this year thanks to a winter kill this winter.

We went as far south as the southern tip of Hoopers Island, and caught a few more fish at most of the places we tried, but it was not an easy day.

Gone Fishin'

 Maybe a little like this:

or this:

Back later with fresh lies.

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Melon Season up and garnering clicks at The Other McCain.

Fish Pic Friday - Laura Ericksen

L a u r a@ lauraoutdoorz 📍FLORIDA | Exploring nature & all its critters! I find wildlife & share its beauty with you. 🌴 🐊 🐍 🦀🦎 🐣 Ocean & Swamp ... more

She's quite the snake charmer. 

Linked at The Right Way in the weekly Rule 5 Saturday LinkOrama. The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Melon Season  up and garnering clicks at The Other McCain.

Fish Pic Friday - Parker Outdoor Adventures

Another catfish killer.  Ohio Sate Record holder for the largest bluecat in the limb line category 101.11 pounds.  You go girl!

Linked at The Right Way in the weekly Rule 5 Saturday LinkOrama. The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Happy 250th, America! up in star-spangled glory at the Other McCain.

Menhaden and Ospreys

 From the National Fisherman, Study fuels Atlantic menhaden debate

As the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission prepares to revisit Atlantic menhaden management later this year, an economic study is adding momentum to shift more of the coastwide quota toward bait fisheries, while recent debate in Virginia continues to highlight disagreements over research and management of the species.

The Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership (TRCP) issued a release on June 24 about a study by Southwick Associates that estimated that recreational fishing trips using Atlantic menhaden as bait generated approximately $1.5 billion in total economic output and supported more than 7,200 jobs nationwide in 2025.

According to the study, anglers spent roughly $804 million on fishing trips involving menhaden bait while using the species during an estimated 13.9 million fishing days along the Atlantic Coast. Of those trips, approximately 2.5 million occurred in New England, with another 6.3 million in the Mid-Atlantic and 5.1 million in the South Atlantic.

"Atlantic fishing trips involving menhaden generate more than $1.5 billion in annual economic output," said Ben Scuderi, lead economist at Southwick Associates. "That figure represents the full spectrum of spending that occurs for fishing trips where menhaden are used as bait, from direct purchases of equipment, food, fuel, and the many other items needed for a day of fishing, to the downstream effects that spending has on retailers, manufacturers, and countless other businesses."

The report arrives ahead of several major Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission decisions expected this fall. In November, the commission’s Atlantic Menhaden Management Board is scheduled to establish a new coastwide total allowable catch for the 2027-28 fishing season and may also decide whether to begin formally reconsidering how state menhaden quotas are allocated.

Tom Horton at the Bay Journal,  The mysterious case of disappearing Chesapeake ospreys

This bird of prey, called a fish hawk by some, is known along shorelines from Japan to Australia, from India and the Strait of Hormuz to much of Europe and North America. “Ospreys and people have been overlapping since there were people,” said Alan Poole, author of two books about Pandion haliaetus.

In 2023, when Joanie began the Virginia Osprey Foundation out of their cottage at Colonial Beach, she observed robust production of 55 osprey chicks from 36 active nests around the community. Baywide, ospreys were continuing their heartening comeback from the dark days of DDT — from a historic 1972 low of about 1,500 nesting pairs to an estimated 10,000-12,000 pairs now throughout the Chesapeake Bay region.

Then, a sudden and mysterious population crash: Only five chicks reached adulthood in 2024, eight in 2025. Young ospreys were seen walking aimlessly, dazed and apparently starving. There were fish crows stealing osprey eggs as females left them in search of food the males could no longer provide. Adults were eating their dead babies. “That is difficult to watch, and the whole town takes it to heart,” Barry said as they prepared for the town’s seventh annual osprey festival this spring.

Baywide, a similar picture was emerging, with poor nesting success throughout 80% of the estuary and its tidal rivers and an estimated 5,500 young ospreys starving to death, according to Bryan Watts, a Virginia scientist known for his decades of Chesapeake osprey research. Ecologically, cannibalism of dead young “makes energetic sense when calories are scarce,” says Watts, who is the director of William & Mary University’s Center for Conservation Biology. But, Joanie said, it breaks your heart to watch.

The reversal of ospreys’ fortunes has been dramatic and well documented. While scientists mostly think there is no single cause, the decline has reinvigorated a dispute over the commercial harvest of menhaden by Omega Protein. a Canadian company with a fishing fleet based in Virginia.

Omega’s fleet of six ships, guided by spotter aircraft, takes about 125,000 metric tons of menhaden annually, fishing from the lower Chesapeake and along the Atlantic Coast. Menhaden are small, oily fish that are packets of superbly calorie-dense energy, beloved by larger fish like striped bass, and by ospreys. Along with tinier but abundant Bay anchovies and silverside minnows, menhaden form the forage base underpinning the Chesapeake’s productivity.

Watts and others have documented that ospreys are doing worst in the saltier parts of the Chesapeake and Atlantic coastal bays where menhaden make up a critical part of their diets. Only in areas with less salty water, the upper Chesapeake and its tidal rivers, are ospreys producing enough young to sustain their populations — though not enough to offset the plummeting reproduction in the rest of the estuary. 

Prey options in fresher water are more varied, with gizzard shad and catfish providing ample calories. Nesting ospreys with young need to catch five or six fish a day to sustain the family.
...
One of Watts’s graduate students has shown that osprey reproduction can be revived if humans give them extra menhaden. He has heard from “quite a few people” around the Bay who are feeding hungry ospreys. “I’m fine with that,” Watts said, “but it’s not a solution to the current deficits.”

In recent days, schools of "peanut bunker", 3-4 inch Menhaden have been circling close to shore at the beach. Osprey, on the other hand, seem pretty scarce; I have only seen one most days. 

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Happy 250th, America! up in star-spangled glory at the Other McCain.

Scofflaw!

Right after I took this pic, a woman sitting nearby told me the Great Blue Heron had swallowed a large eel about an hour previously, and had been sitting there ever since.

A bit overcast, about 80 F, humid, and not very breezy, a classic beach day. Not a great day for fossils. The beach was mostly bare sand; I managed four very ordinary teeth, a small ray plate chevron, and a Tilly bone.

Fish Pic Friday - Jessica Jackson

 A girl on a mission:

On a journey to fish in all 50 states 24/50

Is it too late to start?

Linked at The Right Way in the weekly Rule 5 Saturday LinkOrama.  The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Redness a bit late, but within reason.

Fish and Wildlife Service Redefines Shellfish

 FWS.gov, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Modernizes Shellfish Definition, Reduces Regulatory Ambiguity. "Final rule clarifies that cephalopods such as squid are included in regulatory definition of shellfish."

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today announced a final rule updating the regulatory definition of "shellfish" to eliminate outdated language, improve regulatory clarity, and reduce unnecessary burdens on the regulated community.

Under 50 CFR part 10, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service regulates the import and export of wildlife and wildlife products. The regulations provide an exemption from certain import and export requirements for shellfish.

The final revisions clarify that cephalopods—including squid, octopus, and cuttlefish—are included within the regulatory definition of shellfish. The update aligns federal regulations with modern scientific understanding and longstanding commercial practice.

 

“America’s seafood industry operates in a global marketplace, and our regulations should reflect modern science and common sense,” said U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director Brian Nesvik. “This update removes an unnecessary regulatory burden on U.S. squid fisheries, provides greater certainty for seafood producers and exporters, and aligns our regulations with longstanding commercial and international practice.”

These changes help ensure that commercially harvested squid fisheries are treated consistently with other seafood products under existing import and export regulations. By clarifying the scope of the shellfish exemption, the rule reduces unnecessary regulatory requirements and associated costs for seafood producers, processors, importers, and exporters.

The Service developed the rule in coordination with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to help ensure consistency across federal agencies.

The rule does not alter existing conservation authorities, wildlife protections, or management responsibilities. Instead, it updates definitional language to better reflect current scientific understanding and longstanding industry practice.

OK, that make sense, but I wonder how many days they spent working on it. 

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Redness a bit late, but within reason.

Skates in the Upper Bay?

Probably not the Choptank

Chesapeake Bay Mag reports a New Visitor to the Bay: Skate Spotted in the Choptank

A ShoreRivers team monitoring underwater grass beds in the Lower Choptank River in Maryland spotted something unusual in the water recently: a juvenile Skate.

Cownose Rays are common in the Choptank—a major tributary of the Chesapeake Bay—but other Rays and Skates are not.

“It’s unusual because they are a high-salinity animal, so prefer other spots,” says Matt Pluta, Choptank Riverkeeper. “We are more mid-salinity, in the 12-15 ppt (parts per thousand) range.”

Definitely not the Choptank

 Higher salinity generally means more Sea Nettles, too. I have to say, I haven't seen any yet. But we expect them by July 4.

By comparison, the Atlantic Ocean—the saltiest major ocean— is 33 – 37 ppt.

The fish was located close to Irish Bay, although it hasn’t been seen since. But it’s presence—and an increase in the number of Cownose Rays—tells us something may be changing in local waters. “It tells us we are saltier than normal,” Pluta says.

In case you spot a Ray—or Skate— look but don’t touch. “When it comes to wildlife, keep your distance and just observe,” Pluta recommends.

I've seen a couple of small ones caught in the bay, or washed up dead. Those of us who know better have to remind a lot of folk that the much more common Cownose Rays are not skates.

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Redness a bit late, but within reason.

Fish Pic Friday - Kristine Fischer

Kristine Fischer@midwestfishergal. Defy the stereotype. Ball cap aficionado. Closet musky angler trying to cash checks bass fishing. Joshua 1:9

Linked at The Right Way in the weekly Rule 5 Saturday LinkOrama.The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Obligatory World Cup Post up on time and under budget at The Other McCain.

Back From Fishin'

A 6 AM start, with the sun rising. 

We made the usual stop at Cedar Point, with nothing happening.

A bit of a lumpy ride  across the bay to Hoopers Island, and a couple of rock piles and creek mouths without success.

We fished the north end of Bloodsworth Island, with nice clear water and good grass beds, and found nothing.

We ended up at the Target Ship (the American Mariner) if you can't read the writing on the stern, where we found a slow, but rather steady bite of very large (about 30 inch) Bluefish, with amazing fighting power.

We just had fresh Bluefish for dinner.

Gone Fishin'

 But not like this:

or this: 

Back later with fresh lies 

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Obligatory World Cup Post up on time and under budget at The Other McCain.

The Wednesday Wetness - ใต้น้ำ

Which, as near as I can figure out translates to Chicken in Water from Thai. Is it a clever pun? I'd like to think so.

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Obligatory World Cup Post up on time and under budget at The Other McCain.

New Study Finds Chesapeake Ospreys Starving

 CBF, New Study Links Starving Chesapeake Bay Osprey to Menhaden Woes

A new peer-reviewed study links unprecedented levels of starving osprey chicks in the Chesapeake Bay to concerns around menhaden, a nutrient-packed fish that is a key food source for osprey and many other species.

While several factors influence osprey productivity, reduced availability of Atlantic menhaden is likely the primary driver of poor osprey reproduction in saltier parts of the Chesapeake Bay, according to the study. The new report is based on data from the 2024 nesting season and published this week in Frontiers in Marine Science by researchers at the College of William & Mary’s Center for Conservation Biology, the U.S. Geological Survey, the Maryland National-Capital Park and Planning Commission, and the Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center.

Research in recent years has documented osprey chicks starving in nests across portions of the Chesapeake Bay where osprey primarily rely on menhaden for food. Osprey in many parts of the region are reproducing at rates well below what’s needed to sustain the population.

Virginia is the only state along the Atlantic coast that still allows industrial menhaden fishing in state waters. That lone remaining industrial operation—Omega Protein and their fishing partner Ocean Harvesters—extracts over 100 million pounds of menhaden from Chesapeake Bay waters each year, with no scientific understanding of the impacts to the Bay’s ecology or coastal communities.

Widespread osprey nesting failures are among several warning signs that the menhaden population is struggling in the Bay, including plummeting catches by small-scale watermen who catch menhaden for bait for local crab fisheries.

In a 2025 letter to state fishery regulators, the Virginia Institute of Marine Science suggested the Virginia Marine Resources Commission give “serious consideration to reducing purse seine fishing in Chesapeake Bay,” given that data to understand impacts of concentrating the industrial menhaden fishery in Virginia waters remains “woefully inadequate.”

The new study notes that “a large degree of uncertainty remains about the status of adult menhaden within the Chesapeake Bay.” It adds, “To more fully resolve this uncertainty, assessments of menhaden abundance could enhance understanding of their role within the ecosystem and support management of consumers that depend on them.”

As part of the budget process that will wrap up later this month, Virginia legislators are considering investing in Chesapeake Bay menhaden research. These data are crucial to understanding the impacts of highly concentrated industrial harvests and how many menhaden a healthy Chesapeake Bay requires.

Recent polling shows that 80 percent of Virginia voters support state funding for a menhaden study.

Well, "Science" has spoken. I suspect the study was designed to find this. Unfortunately that's the way this thing tends to work, at least as long a I was in science. 

On the other hand, I see less Ospreys around our neck of the woods these days. Oh, they're here, but not in the numbers that they were several years ago. 

Fish Pic Friday - The Reel Hilary Sue

Aka Hilary Sue Martin:

Hilary Sue Martin@thereelhilarysue
✞ 1 Peter 5:7 Just an outdoors girl trying to do big things🎣
Tik tok | Youtube: TheReelHilarySue

Linked at The Right Way in the weekly Rule 5 Saturday LinkOrama. The Wombat has Rule Five Sunday: More About Agriculture up on time and under budget at The Other McCain.